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| Image: People Gazette |
It was the 1986 FIFA World Cup quarter-final at the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City, and Argentina played England on 22 June 1986. Maradona was the skipper of the Argentine squad; they needed to progress to the next round, and England was standing in their way.
The game was held four years after the Falklands War between Argentina and the United Kingdom and was a crucial part of the already intense Argentina–England football rivalry. It was also a match that included two of the most well-known goals in football history, both scored by Argentina captain Diego Maradona.
The first goal, after 51 minutes, was the “Hand of God goal,” which Maradona scored using his hand. The second, four minutes after his first, saw him dribble past five England players, Peter Beardsley, Peter Reid, Terry Butcher, Terry Fenwick, Butcher (again), and finally goalkeeper Peter Shilton, and became known as the “Goal of the Century.”
Six minutes into the second half, Maradona cut inside from the left, played a low diagonal pass to the edge of the area to teammate Jorge Valdano, and continued his run, hoping for a one-two movement. Maradona’s pass was played slightly behind Valdano and reached England’s Steve Hodge, the left midfielder who had dropped back to defend.
Hodge tried to hook the ball clear but miscued it. The ball looped off his foot and into the penalty area toward Maradona, who had continued his run. England goalkeeper Peter Shilton came out of his goal to punch the ball clear. Maradona, despite being 8 inches (20 cm) shorter than the 6-foot-1 (1.85 m) Shilton, reached it first with his outside left hand. The ball bounced into the goal. Referee Ali Bin Nasser of Tunisia said he did not see the infringement and allowed the goal.
Maradona later said, “I was waiting for my teammates to embrace me, and no one came... I told them, ‘Come hug me, or the referee isn’t going to allow it.” At the post-game press conference, Maradona facetiously commented that the goal was scored “un poco con la cabeza de Maradona y otro poco con la mano de Dios” (“a little with the head of Maradona and a little with the hand of God”), after which it became known as the “Hand of God” goal.
Here is a video of the goal:
The goal helped intensify the footballing rivalry between the two nations.
Argentina won the game 2-1 and went on to win the 1986 World Cup with a victory over West Germany in the final match. Maradona won the golden ball for player of the tournament; England’s goalscorer on the day, Gary Lineker, won the golden boot for being the tournament’s top scorer.
The referee of the controversial match between Argentina and England, Ali Bin Nasser, has put the ‘hand of God’ ball up for auction with which Diego Maradona scored an infamous goal.
Maradona created one of the most memorable moments in a World Cup during the high-profile match between the two countries at political war against each other following the Falklands war. See more below:
Thirty-six years after the infamous incident, Bin Nasser, the owner of the ball, has decided to part ways with the iconic ball.
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| Image: SPORTbible |
“This ball is part of international football history. It feels like the right time to be sharing it with the world,” he stated.
According to London-based Graham Budd Auctions, the ball will be auctioned next month, with bidding to start on November 16. Interested buyers can start registering for the bidding contest online. Registration starts on October 28.
The company also said it was anticipating selling the ball for between £2.5 million and £3 million (up to $3.4 million).
“With the history surrounding the ball, we are expecting this lot to be hugely popular when it comes up for auction,” it said.
Maradona died aged 60 in 2020, but the things associated with his name still cost a huge amount of money – the jersey worn by the football icon in the match was sold for around $9.3 million.
Source: gazettengr.com
#Hand of God
#Maradona
#Argentina vs. England
#Mexico ’86
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